Pavio's Dual-Coding Theory (1991) and Mayer's Multimedia Principal (2000) form the foundation for proposing a multi-coding theory centered around Multi-Touch Tablets and the newest generation of e-textbooks to scaffold struggling readers in reading and learning from science textbooks. Using E. O. Wilson's "Life on Earth: An Introduction" (2012) as a simulation for our essay, we theorize that text, graphics, interactive elements, and audio represent four distinct encoding schemes. Each of these encoding schemes can be used as separate but mutually supportive scaffolds to assist struggling students in reading and learning with science textbooks.